The 2016 Arctic Report Card Results Are Out, and They’re Not Pretty

"What happens in the Arctic, doesn't stay in the Arctic."

Every year, the Arctic receives an official "Report Card" from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to assess the environmental changes that are occurring in the region. And like many things in 2016, things aren't looking too good.

The Huffington Postreports that the 2016 Arctic Report Card revealed the dire nature of our nature's decline, exhibited by record highs for the Arctic's temperatures as well as record lows for the declining sea ice.

"The average surface air temperature for the year ending September 2016 is by far the highest since 1900, and new monthly record highs were recorded for January, February, October and November 2016," according to the report card.

"Rarely have we seen the Arctic show a clearer, stronger or more pronounced signal of persistent warming and its cascading effects on the environment than this year,” Jeremy Mathis, director of NOAA’s Arctic research program, toldUSA Today. He continued: "All signs point to continuing on this trajectory."

That's right: Things won't necessarily get better.

And as Jeremy ominously put it, "What happens in the Arctic, doesn't stay in the Arctic." This pattern could lead to weather extremes in other parts of the world, too.